If you’re like me, you’ve just about exhausted the usual channels for networking. While networking groups are good for making contacts, those contacts don’t always translate into sales. Attending too many meetings with different groups can sometimes do nothing more than drain your pocketbook. So how can you meet people in your community that will be interested in your product, and bring you steady sales?

Volunteering as a Marketing Strategy

Think about it. You’re working with a diverse group of go-getters for a cause. While you will all be like-minded in the sense that you want to help a particular organization or non-profit, you all work in different parts of the city and do different things. Without having a specific agenda to sell, you will build relationships with these people, who will then think of you when a need arises that you can fill.

How Will Volunteering Help My Marketing Efforts?

Think about the people you have met at church, at your children’s school, in the community. You probably know where they work, and if anyone mentions needing services or products, you immediately think of the people you know can provide them. Read more

It’s a common situation: new business owners need to advertise, but they don’t have the capital to do so early in their company’s operations. The dilemma is difficult. You can’t generate business without marketing and advertising, but you need money for marketing and advertising. Unfortunately, many of the small businesses will fail as a result of not advertising their products or services.

These tips will keep you from becoming a statistic:

Take Marketing Risks

You wouldn’t be in business if you weren’t willing to take risks. You may have taken out a second mortgage on your home, raided the nest egg, or scrimped and saved to start your business. It is a complete waste of all of that if you do not advertise.

You Can’t Afford NOT to Advertise

You may have no money coming in during the first few months of your business. So if you have no money, how can you advertise?

First of all, marketing and advertising should be built into your monthly budget (you have a budget, right?), along with electricity, web hosting, inventory, etc. You need marketing just as much as you need electricity. Designate a percentage of the anticipated sales you plan (hope) to earn each month on advertising.

Each month, decide how you’ll spend your allotted marketing money. Some affordable but effective marketing tools include: Read more